NJ’s Medicinal Marijuana Program: Dec. 6, 2013 was the first anniversary of legal sales of marijuana in NJ. Jan. 18, 2014 is the 4th anniversary of the Compassionate Use Act becoming law. CCF, the ATC in Egg Harbor Twp. opened Oct. 28, 2013, but there have been concerns about the quality of the marijuana available. The ATC in Woodbridge, NJ, Garden State Dispensary, opened on Dec. 4, 2013, and high quality marijuana has been available there.

There is still no Appellate Court decision on the lawsuit against DOH’s MMP re: tort claims and ultra vires (beyond the law) Regulations.

S1220: NJ Senate vote is scheduled on S1220 on 1/9/14 at 2pm. S1220 passed the Assembly in May, 67 – 2. It says medical marijuana is the equivalent of any other prescribed medication & not an illicit substance that disqualifies a patient from medical care, inc. organ transplants. A4537: Gov. Christie said he will not sign A4537 which will permit NJ patients to possess medical marijuana obtained from other jurisdictions and recognize out-of-state ID cards. A4537 passed the Assembly (50-23-7) on 12/19/13, but the identical Senate bill, S3108 is not scheduled for committee hearing yet.

CMMNJ's meetings are the second Tuesday of each month from 7 - 9 PM at the Lawrence Twp. Library, 2751 Brunswick Pike, Lawrence Twp., Tel. #609.882.9246. All are welcome.
(Meeting at the library does not imply Mercer County’s endorsement of our issue.)

CMMNJ, a 501(c)(3) public charity, is a non-profit educational organization.

Monthly Public Meeting Minutes, October 8, 2013; 7:00 PM -- 9:00 PM

There will be no November 2013 meeting due to a scheduling conflict with the library.
The next CMMNJ meeting is December 10, 2013, 7 - 9 PM at the Lawrence Twp. Library.
The Oct 8 meeting covered all the agenda items listed. I advocated for CMMNJ to have an ambitious 5 year plan to gather evidence and support so we are ready to move forward to establish an actual Medical Marijuana Program in the next gubernatorial administration.

We had a discussion on improving CMMNJ's web site.

Short discussion of the Oct 24th U.S. Court hearing stemming from Smoke Down Prohibition IX, the Philadelphia event at which former CMMNJ Board member Chris Goldstein was cited. Goldstein faces six months in prison and a $1000 fine for possession of a single joint.

Greenleaf ATC reopened with limited access. Egg Harbor ATC was scheduled to open in September, but never did. (It opened Oct. 28, 2013.) Woodbridge ATC (CCCofA) given grow permit by DOH. It was reported that Breakwater ATC has no location at the present time.

The group discussed changing current law to allow edibles for adults, eliminate the Dr. registry, and film hospice patients to dramatize their cause and get another Dr. (whom a board member knows) to support med MJ.

New matter: There were concerns raised over the costs to produce this video. An idea was vetted to produce a video of patients with several people volunteering to help on the project.

Oral arguments in the lawsuit against DOH were heard in Appellate Court, Mt. Holly, 9/18/13. NORML NJ lawyers asked the court: to continue the tort claims against the DOH; to force the DOH to do what the law requires; to declare certain regulations ultra vires (beyond the law); and, to appoint CMMNJ a monitor for the MMP. The 3-judge panel may decide as early
as Nov.

Ken and Jim at Redbank Fundraiser

About The Coalition

Coalition members hold diverse opinions, but we all agree:

Arresting patients is wrong, and it must stop now.

Modern clinical research, centuries of experience and the impassioned personal accounts of thousands of real patients concur: Marijuana can alleviate symptoms of certain serious medical conditions, and it can do so when other drugs fail to help.

Doctors should be free to recommend this medicine to promote health, and sick or injured New Jerseyans should be free to use it responsibly.

The safety margin for therapeutic marijuana is as wide as it can be ─there is no known lethal dose.

New Jersey healthcare professionals dispense potentially lethal drugs every day. We trust them to do so very carefully, and solely to benefit their patients. Common sense and compassion demand that doctors should control non-lethal marijuana medicine for those who truly need it. To make this important change a reality, your voice is needed.

The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act was introduced in the State Senate in January 2005 by Senator Nicholas Scutari (D-Linden). A companion bill is pending in the Assembly, sponsored by Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Princeton) and Assemblyman Michael Carroll (R-Morris Township).